Wednesday, 11 June 2014

Vix is Right

Of course Vix is right; you really don't need me to tell you that. She recently stated on her blog that less is not more, More is More. Any moron can comprehend that! Less is less and the expression 'less is more' is really just secret code for 'less is better' used by those chic and elegant minimalists who are so damned annoyingly, well, chic and elegant. What is 'better' for one person is not 'better' for another. Hooray for variety and the way it spices up life. As fun as all these hackneyed phrases are, I am feeling a bit left out. I don't have one to live by because I am somewhere in between, depending on who you compare me with.

It would take some degree of creativity and cleverness to portray me as a minimalist, and yet in some areas I am.

Being a minimalist or a maximalist is rather a relative thing. I wear three rings on my fingers at all times, never taking them off even when I go to bed. I have three piercings in each ear which are always filled and a small stud in my nose. These adornments are on me always. By the standards of my peer group this disqualifies me as a minimalist. I also own masses of jewelry which I rarely wear; necklaces and bracelets are seldom worn things as I find them irritating throughout a regular day, despite loving the individual items and the look of them when I put them on. I will put one or two on if I am going out somewhere, to meet friends for a drink or a meal, and really only have to sit there looking adorned but non-functional.

I wear a wider variety of colour and more colours combined than most of my peers, but I am not a fan of wearing really bright colours; primaries and neons do not feature largely in my wardrobe and given that I also don't care much for pastels, I have a difficult time with summer clothes. I also favour more layers than most of my peers do and am willing to experiment or wear something that is a decorative layer as much or more as it is a functional one. In fact I like layers so much it is a bit distressing for me when the temperature gets so warm I can't wear them with any comfort.

My preference is no makeup or very little and even if and when I go all out and feel as though I am piling it on, I pretty much always achieve 'the natural look'. I feel like an imposter in styled hair, with wash and go being more to my liking.

And then there is my love- hate relationship with embellishments. I love embroidery, paisley patterns, velvet trim, ribbons and lace but will pick the sequins off any item of clothing that comes with them unless it is a wedding dress and will pass up clothing items that contain metalic threads. I am finding I do not love wearing pom poms either. But fringe is good if it isn't really long.

So, in my minimalist/maximalist world my ideal outfit might be a catsuit that is body conscious and sleek but covered in embroidery and velvet trim. I would wear boots with it, of course. By now you realise that in this fantasy world I am a super hero. Able to conquer mounds of laundry and fast moving dust bunnies in a single day!

Looking nothing remotely like this super woman, I did spend a day flouncing around in pom poms, which is how I know they are probably not for me. I will leave you with this outfit to contemplate. It's a bathing suit cover up, posing as a caftan. I quite love it and the fabric is so delicious. But not..... you know, the pom poms.

Look there is a pom pom trying to escape. He knows I am thinking of snipping them off. And see that wooden bead bracelet? That came off when I was at home.

23 comments:

Sorry if I end up commenting twice. Google ate my last one. I really get your frustration with bobbles. Cut some off a jumper recently. Also find jewellery annoying sometimes esp. If hot. Love your coverup and pom-pom colours the edge nicely. Can you cut them off and leave a coloured edge?I love minimalist clothes and decorating, but just can't quite pull it off. Colour will creep in! The closest I have is my white bathroom, with white wood dado and floorboards and shower, with pale blue walls. See second last photo in http://naturalmedley.blogspot.com.au/2014/06/gender-talk-and-dressing-up.html

Interesting subject. For myself, I consider myself somewhat of a minimalist. Because I'm petite, I prefer to not bog myself down with too much. So, yes, I embrace the less is more philosophy. However, when I look at stylist extraordinaire, Rachel Zoe, who piles it on and looks great, it makes me realize that it all depends on the person...just like you stated.

You have a very classic look and Rachel Zoe leans a bit bohemian so it fascinates me that she is one of your favourite style icons. I think it is really key to be true to who you are but sometimes we like a look that doesn't feel right on us so we just have to admire it on other people.xoxo

Mrs. Roper?? haha Hilarious! Wasn't she married to Don Knots? Or am I getting my shows mixed up? He just came up in another conversation I was having on Instagram.

I don't know how I ended up on an older post first, but here I am on a current one. ;)I agree with "more is more" until I get home and actually need to get some work done, or cook dinner, etc...I can't stand rings and bracelets on in the kitchen.

That little pom pom wants to be set free! You can always make a ring out of it!

Mrs Roper, was married to Mr Roper. LOL played by Norman Fell and Mrs Roper was played but Audra somebody. Eventually the Ropers moved away and Mr Furley became the new landlord. He was played by Don Knots. I think I am slightly embarrassed that I know all of this,

There are so many pom poms I could make many sets of earrings and sell them all at a craft fair. ;-)

i´m like you in the jewelry segment. love me some pretty stuff but most of the time it gets in my way, so i wear them only for events were i have to be only decorative ;-) but mostly not even then. with my colorful, totally me, selfsewed clothes and lots of hair on my head some bling is often to much - i like very decorative i.e. huge jewelry, thin chains with tiny pendant or pearl studs are not for me. can i say i like a sensual style but not cluttered?and yes - it´s very personal. vix by example LIVES that colorful, bejeweled life that her style symbolizes. in my rocky, woody and rural region i feel that a dirndl-like dress or some tweed is the appropriate wear, function and look wise. if you detach the trim carefully you can send it to vix! she will made another gorgeous curtain couture item with.xxxxx

Vix could wrap them around herself a million times and make a sexy bikini. But she will have to wait until next summer because I am still undecided about the pom poms.Yes, You can say you like a sensual style but not cluttered. Sensuality is about touch and the feel of fabric. I think I am very much like that too. I pay a lot of attention to the feel of fabric and my likes and dislikes are quite highly associated with that. It is a highly amusing image to imagine you in your environment wearing psychedelic maxi dresses and bangles to your elbows. It's a fabulous look but as you say, perhaps not a Germanic Woodsy look. I think you should try fairy dressing. Beate the Wood Nymph sounds good.xoxoxoxoxoxo

I will google Mrs Roper in a minute - back to you! your kaftan is divine, wearing it with the skirt and sandals makes it stand out even more - which is wonderful! I do like extra's on clothing, give me fringing, sequins, pom-poms (I don't own anything with them...yet, but I do have some fancy plans!) I have to have lips and eye-brows yet I feel strangled by jewellry at times, I don't wear bracelets or necklaces and at times prefer no rings (including my wedding and engagement rings) anyhoo, I like you just the way you are x x x

I love the colours and when you're wearing it over that flouncy skirt it looked like a dress.

I actually added pom poms to a kimono I bought this year. I like them. It goes with the vibe of the boho garment. I won't be doing housework in it though.

I love to wear loads of bracelets together and big rings...but IRL? Not-so-much. I feel I need to take all the rings off (except my wedding band) every time I wash my hands which is often. The bracelets make too much noise and I also feel I need to take those off to wash my hands. That is why you often see me wearing necklaces. I don't need to wash my neck as often! LOL

It nearly works as a dress just on it's own but I felt a bit more comfortable putting the skirt under it. I"d wear it with jeans too. I really love the colours also and I the fabric feels a bit silky though it is cotton. I scooped it up in Winners, where I had been keeping an eye out for one since the summer stock started coming in. When I saw it I laughed because I remembered you adding pom poms to yours. I think the pom poms look fine, it's just me who isn't totally comfortable in them.

So now you have shared with the world that you don't wash your neck often, we will all look at you askance! ;-) I used to wear necklaces all the time, which is probably why I have accumulated so many but I seem to have gone off them. xoxo

I love this imposter caftan, pom poms and all. The runaway ball can easily be reattached with a delicate transplantation procedure with a noose thread. This colour/pattern looks great on you. Why not with jeans and heels? or a maxi skirt? I have an outfit I call my Mrs. Roper outfit too. Ha! I'm like you, I hold back on the bling, my body feels bound by it sometimes, like it can't moooove. But I'm playing with it, seeing what will happen.

I am getting rather fond of the runaway ball though, as I do like a streak of independence. All the other pom poms are just displaying herd mentality.

I absolutely would wear this caftan with jeans and my favourite wedge sandals. I'd wear it with my favourite funky boots too.

I really like the concept of signature jewelry, a certain piece or few pieces that are associated with you and you wear them with everything. Perhaps that is because I am lazy. The pieces I wear constantly feel like part of me and I can't take them off without feeling naked. If I add more bling and keep them on it can start to look a bit much and then the jewelry is wearing me.xoxo

I'd love to see the pompom tunic worn over that gorgeous maxi dress you wore on Mother's Day! Go on, try it out!Yes, more is more in my world. Years of uniforms and corporate attire and dress codes make me rejoice and pile it all on years later, as a celebration of being free and self employed.Adding jewellery makes the dress I'm wearing "me" as opposed to a dress I've put on, does that make sense? xxxxxx

It makes perfect sense. I think being true to who we are and getting that feeling of this is me, is the most important and interesting part of dressing. What I am learning about myself is that what I like in theory and what I like to actually wear are not always the same. I adore your jewelry and I own lots of pieces that you would wear. But I don't wear them despite loving them. I never had to wear a corporate uniform, which I know I would hate, but I am still working on shedding my teacher look because it was only ever partially me.xoxo

I am a bit of an inbetweenie too, I think. I love all my jewellery, and am never without rings, bracelets,,earrings and a necklace. And I like strong colours and busy prints. But I am not so fussed about embellishment, or lots of complicated layering, I find the silhouette gets too messy. And I don't own a single be-pom-pommed item. (Yes, of course that's a word.)I love the colours and shape of your kaftan top/tunic. I think I would wear it over a slimmer, sleeker bottom half though. Jeans or a long slimline maxi, maybe? Not that you asked for advice, so feel free to ignore me! The colours are beautiful, your favourites, and the pom poms add a little pzazz! xxxx

I generally get a chuckle out of unsolicited advice. This was my version of a casual caftan look. For sitting around reading. I would definitely pair it with jeans for a coffee date with a friend but I'm not sure if my maxis suit it. According to Vix my striped dress does but I am not sold on that combo yet. LOL OH well, it means I get to play and inflict more blog posts on people.I do like the word be-pom-pommed. I am going to attempt to use it in a conversation tomorrow. xoxo